Snowflake Curses
by crystallizedflames
Summary: AU Crossover/Post-DH. Jack Frost and Rapunzel Gothel are both admitted to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Jack doesn't particularly care for Rapunzel, choosing to accept the status of a cold-hearted Lothario. As time goes on, Rapunzel becomes somewhat of an interest for Jack once he realizes that two share a complication in the Wizarding World: Incurable Curses
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter 1_

"Oh it's so exciting! Your first day, Jack! I can hardly bear it!" Aunt Tooth was flitting about the house, shoving Jack's close into his trunks for him. Jack, on the other hand, sat on his bed, his iPhone on and earbuds in his ears. He didn't particularly care about the letter that had arrived a month earlier. He didn't particularly care about "following family traditions." Hell, he didn't particularly care about anything.

His relatives, however, did care particularly. About _everything._

"How's the kid doin'?" Uncle Aster poked his head into the room. Tooth turned excitedly towards him.

"Get ready to go, Aster! We're taking Jack to the train station soon. He'll be going to Hogwarts, and he'll get into Gryffindor, just like you and Nicholas did! Then he'll grow up, and follow the family lines! Oh, it's just so exciting, Aster!" She grabbed Aster's hands and started dancing around the room with him.

"The kid doesn't much look like he wants to go, Toothy," Uncle Aster glanced at Jack, who was now waving his wand around, causing snow to fall down upon the three.

"He'll join in the excitement soon enough. Grab Nicholas and Sandy. I just need to pack Jack's books, and we're set to go to the station!" Aunt Tooth started humming as she grabbed at the tower of books standing next to Jack's bed.

Jack sighed, and turned away from his aunt. Sure, being a wizard was awesome and crap, but he didn't enjoy school, and he'd rather not go into the dull family business.

* * *

"Mother! I'm ready!" Rapunzel smiled as she dragged her trunks down the staircase. Her long blonde hair was coiled neatly on top of them, so she wouldn't trip over it. If only she could just see where she was going‒

"Ahh! Oof!" It figures she would trip over the broken step. Her trunks went flying, her nice pile of hair flying around the room.

"Oh, darling, you mustn't be so hasty." Gothel swooped in, scooping up the trunks and putting them in a nice pile by the door. "Look at your hair! Rapunzel, you can't get on the train looking like that!"

"I'll be right back, Mother." Rapunzel hopped up the stairs, her long train of hair following her. It had taken her hours to brush her hair this morning, and doing it again would cause them to be late. "Where's my wand…where's my wand….." She searched frantically through her bedroom, finally discovering it in her paintbrush drawer. Wrapping her hair around her head, she stuck the wand in, creating a messy bun. A very large messy bun. "Ready!"

"Then hurry up, dear. We'll be late!"

* * *

"Can you not?" Jack muttered as his Uncle North began to bring him in for a hug.

"We are going to miss you, my boy!" He gave a hearty laugh, and Jack could feel his bones practically breaking from the hug.

"Oh, you're going to have so much fun at Hogwarts, darling! Your parents did. This is where they first met. Isn't that right, Aster?" Aunt Tooth started to fix Jack's hair, and he swat her outstretched hand away.

"I'm fine, Aunt Tooth." He saw her face droop, and gave her a smile. "I'll be fine."

"Get on the train, boy, you'll miss it." Uncle Aster gave him a smile with a push that ended up knocking Jack into a girl his age.

"Ah! Sorry! I didn't mean to be in your way! Oh dear, where did Mother go…." The girl he had run into scampered off as quickly as she had appeared. Jack didn't even have time to say he was sorry. In fact, she had said it instead. As if it was her fault he had run into her.

"Strange kid." He shook his head, then turned and waved goodbye to his family. They were an odd bunch, waving and shouting as he stepped on the train. They were all he had though, so he gave them a half-hearted smile as he disappeared into one of the compartments facing the opposite side of the tracks.

It was empty, and as he lugged his trunk containing his change of robes onto the luggage rack, he could hear other first-years like himself finding friends and getting into compartments. Lots of kids past him, but when they looked through the glass, they merely glanced back away. _They probably don't want to confront the kid with white hair. _He sighed and stared out the window as the train began to move.

* * *

The sound of the door to the compartment opening startled him. He looked back and saw that it was the girl he had first run into. "Hi," she said, blushing. "Everywhere else is full, and I've got a lot of…well…" She turned and looked at the trail behind her. Jack's eyes widened when he saw that the trail was _her hair. _How does someone grow that much hair?

"So…can I? Join you?" She asked, shifting her weight from foot to foot. Jack shook himself awake, and nodded.

"Uh, yeah."

She entered, pulling her hair in behind her. She coiled it neatly on the chair next to her. There wasn't a lot, now that Jack saw it. It only trailed two or three feet behind her, not as much as he had at first thought. Once the girl was done, she turned and smiled at him. "I'm Rapunzel Gothel. First-year. Hoping to be in Hufflepuff."

"I'm Jack Frost. First-year, too. Um, I'm not really hoping to be in anything."

"Nice to meet you, Jack."

"Same to you."

That summed up their conversation for about an hour, until Jack decided he couldn't take the silence any longer. "Why Hufflepuff?"

Rapunzel looked at him. "Why?"

"Yeah. I mean, everyone else wants to be in Gryffindor, or Slytherin with a dying passion. No one really cares for Hufflepuff."

"That's why I'm hoping for it. I think that maybe if I get into Hufflepuff, no one will notice me. I won't need to be worried about anyone thinking low of me, because my house will already be underestimated."

"Oh." He watched as she stared out the window. He glanced at her hair, and it finally hit him that no normal person has that much hair. _She must have a disease or a curse on her. _Jack knew as well as anyone that people who had curses or diseases that couldn't be cured in the Wizarding World weren't looked upon as normal. In fact, they were often shut off from the society. Sure, the wizards might say they were accepting, but that's exactly what they were. Words.

"Do you mind if I paint?" She started taking out paintbrushes from her trunk, then paused, and looked to him. He nodded.

"Go ahead. I don't mind."

"Thank you." She smiled as she took down a piece of canvas and some paints and started to paint. He could see how much she enjoyed it.

Jack left Rapunzel to her painting, and he decided to take a nap for the rest of the ride to Hogwarts.

Rapunzel woke him up so they could change into their robes, and the two separated as they got their things together and left the train. Jack figured he'd see her again. She was, after all, under a curse.

People who were cursed had a tendency to stick together.

That was obvious enough to Jack.


	2. Chapter 2

_Chapter 2_

"First-years! First-years this way!" A half-giant was moving all the first years towards the edge of the platform. Jack started moving towards him when another first-year ran into him, laughing.

"Oh God, sorry! The mates were messing around with me a bit." The boy laughed, and helped Jack up. "Scorpius Malfoy." He stuck out a hand.

Jack shook it. "Jack Frost."

"Frost, you say?" Scorpius smirked. "You've got the hair for it."

Jack scowled, touching his white hair. "You're one to talk. Nice stardust, Scorpo." Scorpius felt his hair, and started laughing when glitter came off on his hands.

"You're not bad." Scorpius grinned at him. "Wanna share a boat together? I'll introduce you to my mates."

Jack shrugged, giving Scorpius a smile. "That depends. Do they have weird ass names too?"

Scorpius threw his arm around Jack's shoulder. "I have a feeling we're going to get along swell, Frost."

"That makes one of us, Princess Sparkledust."

* * *

"Oh, come on!" Rapunzel scooped up her hair as fast as she could, running after the other first-years. A boy had slammed her hair in a compartment door, and it had taken a while to get it back out. Dried tears speckled her cheeks. A number of cruel things had already been done to her, and she hadn't even gotten to the castle yet. _Please put me in Hufflepuff…Please._

"Oi! Hurry up, Goldie!" The last boat was about to leave just as Rapunzel ran up. Inside sat a girl with long, curly red hair. She looked rather impatient, tapping her foot, her arms crossed.

"I'm coming!" She jumped into the boat, and it pushed away from the dock, pushing itself fast through the dark waters, trying to catch up with the entourage ahead. "Thanks for waiting for me."

"Don't mention it. I heard two girls talking about some cursed girl behind them, scheming to leave you here with no boat."

"Oh. Yeah, that'd be me." Rapunzel frowned, watching the dark waters splash up against the sides of the boat.

"I pushed them into the lake."

"Oh, that's-WHAT?"

The red-head shrugged. "My family doesn't tolerate bullying."

"Well, erm, thank you. For doing that." Rapunzel smiled at the girl.

She smiled back. "I'm Rose, by the way. Rose Weasley."

"I'm Rapunzel Gothel. Pleasure to meet you."

"Same to you."

The castle came into sight, rendering the two speechless. It had been nearly 12 years since it had been rebuilt, and it still glowed as if the wizards had just put the finishing touches on it yesterday. The many windows all glowed with candlelight, and the two could just make out the carriages crossing the drawbridge into the castle.

"Hurry on up to the castle! Professor Longbottom will be waitin' fer you." Hagrid, the half-giant, was directing the first years as they stepped off of their boats.

"Come on! We get to be Sorted now!" Rose nearly capsized the boat, she hopped up from her seat so fast.

"H-hang on!" Rapunzel quickly stepped out, rushing after Rose.

* * *

"You will be Sorted into one of four houses: Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff…." Professor Longbottom was giving the students instructions as they waited outside the main dining hall. Rose leaned over to Rapunzel as he did.

"My family wants me to be sorted into Gryffindor, but I want to be in Ravenclaw. What about you?"

"Uh, well, I'd like to be in Hufflepuff."

"Huh. Hufflepuff. It's a nice house." Rose smiled at her. Rapunzel beamed. She was the first to compliment her choice.

"In you go." Professor Longbottom opened the large doors, and the first-years marched in. Rapunzel gaped as they entered. She'd heard of the ceiling being enchanted and of the beautiful dining arrangements, but seeing it was entirely different from hearing and reading about it.

She heard snickering behind her, and turned to see the boy she'd shared a compartment with, Jack, and another with very light blonde hair beside him. They were both looking at Rose, and she could tell that the boy with the light blonde hair had just made a joke about her new friend. Rapunzel glared at Jack, whose eyes widened at her. She turned forward as Professor Longbottom began to read off the list of first-years to be Sorted.

She whispered with Rose about the dining hall ("It's just like what I've read in _Hogwarts, a History II_!" "You've read it too?" "Of course I have!") until she heard Jack's name called.

"Frost, Jack." Jack slid past her, making his way to the stool with the tattered Sorting Hat. Professor Longbottom put it on him, and after a few seconds, it shouted out, "SLYTHERIN."

Jack slid off the stool, no expression on his face as the Slytherin table cheered. Next after him was, "Faunteil, Belle," who was sorted into Ravenclaw, then "Grabowski, Amber," who went to Hufflepuff. A few more passed through until "Gordon, Beckett," was sorted into Slytherin. Rapunzel saw that he had become friends with Jack, as Jack's face brightened considerably once he saw that someone he knew was in the same house as him.

"Gothel, Rapunzel." Rapunzel suddenly felt very nervous as she climbed the stairs towards the Hat. She dropped her bundle of hair as she reached the Hat, and where whispers once came from the House tables, all stopped. She blushed, trying to hide the length of her hair as Professor Longbottom set the Hat upon her head.

She didn't hear anything for a few minutes, and she could feel the rest of the dining hall getting restless. A voice finally popped into her head, just as she was about to give up hope that it had found a House for her.

_Hmm…fine amount of bravery, you have…..let's see…..Oh. How peculiar._

_ What? What is it? _She thought fervently, worried that the Hat wouldn't let her into a House because of what had happened to her.

_Normally, I'd say Hufflepuff (you're very well-rounded, my dear) but this…this ability you have….hmm…you have a special gift. A very special gift. Let's say…._

_ Please say Hufflepuff! Please! I don't want to be in a well-known House! I'll be picked on for not living up to standards, and‒_

"RAVENCLAW!" The Hat announced proudly, and Professor Longbottom took the Hat off of Rapunzel, who climbed slowly down from the school, and walked towards the silent Ravenclaw table.

Most of them gave her dirty looks, but one of the first-year girls scooted over to let her sit down. "Thank you." Rapunzel whispered, staring at the ground as the others were Sorted.

"Are you okay?" The girl asked, handing Rapunzel a piece of cake.

Rapunzel accepted it, and looked up at the girl, smiling. "I'm fine, thank you."

"I'm Belle Faunteil."

"Rapunzel Gothel."

"I love your hair. It's beautiful." She gave Rapunzel a wink. "I'm rather good at hairstyles. You should let me try sometime."

"Thank‒" Rapunzel was interrupted by the name "Weasley, Rose" being called out. She gave Belle a smile, then swiveled around so she could see Rose get Sorted. The Hat remained silent for a fair amount of time before yelling out, "RAVENCLAW!"

Rapunzel squealed as Rose raced towards the table, which erupted in loud, boisterous cheers, a far cry from how they accepted Rapunzel. Ignoring the many hands aimed at her, Rose sat down next to Rapunzel, giving her a hug. "We get to room together now!"

"We do?"

"Yeah! All three of us, eh?" Rose smiled at Belle, who glanced up and gave her one back.

"This is going to be so much fun!" Belle said, shaking hands with Rose after she had introduced herself.

"Move aside, mutant." A girl from the far end of the table came and squeezed herself between Rapunzel and Rose. "Talia Francis, third-year. I know so much about you, Rose! I hope we can be fast friends." She gushed, hugging Rose, who looked rather uncomfortable, and glanced at Rapunzel. Rapunzel just gave her a wavering smile, and stared down at her food as Belle death-glared the girl.

"Um, Talia, Rapunzel is my friend, and I would prefer it if you didn't call her a mutant."

"But she is, Rose. She's scum, someone who should be put in a quarantine facility. Ugh, just sitting next to her makes me feel contaminated from whatever curse she got put upon her. Don't you agree?" She frowned at Rapunzel, scooting farther away from her and closer to Rose, whose face began to turn red.

"Talia, please leave."

"But why? We were getting along so well." She smiled sweetly at Rose.

"Maybe we would've, had you not decided to insult one of my friends. I may not be my mother, but I can sure as hell wield a wand if I need to." Rose's glare made Talia look like she was shrinking into herself.

"I'll talk to you later, Rose." She got up, and glared at Rapunzel as she left.

"Are you okay, Goldie?" Rose asked worriedly.

"I'm just going to, ah, go to the bathroom…uhm, please excuse me." Rapunzel stood up, walking as quickly as she could towards the doors at the end of the hall. Tears threatened to spill as she did, hearing the other comments the other students had.

"Ew. Look. It's the mutant."

"Ugh, why are they even allowed to go to Hogwarts? They're pests."

"My mother says that if you touch a cursed person, you get the same curse they have."

Rapunzel pushed open the doors, breaking into a run as her tears finally began to flow down her cheeks. _I want to go home._


	3. Chapter 3

_Chapter 3_

"Where's she going?" Jack looked up from his food to see Beckett watching someone walking down the aisle between the Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tables. He turned, and recognized Rapunzel. Her head was down, and everyone she passed turned to look at her, whispering to their friends. She pushed open the large dining room doors, and disappeared down the hallway. The people who had been watching her turned back to their meals, the entertainment gone.

"No idea." Scorpius said, his mouth full. "Why do we care anyways?"

Jack debated between going after her, and staying with his friends. She _had _glared at him earlier for laughing at Scorpius' comment about Rose having a lion's mane, but then again, she was getting more crap than he was. Thanks to Scorpius' hair color, Jack didn't appear as much as a curse victim as she did.

"I'm going to go to the loo. I'll meet up with you guys at the Common Room, okay?" Jack grinned, then stood, and walked out.

Once he had gotten out of the dining room, he started running towards the bathroom. That's where Aunt Tooth always went when Uncle North said something cruel, or Uncle Aster decided to criticize her for not being a true wizard because she had chosen to be a dentist for Muggles. He figured that it was as good as anywhere to start looking for Rapunzel.

Sure enough, he heard sobbing coming from the girl's loo. He peeked inside, praying that no one else was there. Sneaking inside, he rapped on the only shut door there. "Rapunzel?" He muttered.

"Y-yes?" A shaky voice answered. He could hear her sniffling.

"It's Jack."

"Jack!" She burst out of the stall. "You shouldn't be in here!" Her nose was still running a bit, and her green eyes sparkled with unshed tears. Her nose was red as well, and she was doing her best to look disapproving of Jack's situation. He smiled at her.

"You look awful."

"That's not a very nice thing to say." She looked in the mirror anyways, and started cleaning herself up.

"You okay?"

"Yes, yes, I'll be fine in a minute." She gave him a smile, and motioned for him to go. "Some dust from the air currents of one of the ghosts just got in my nose."

"Alright." Jack started to walk out, then turned back towards her. "They don't deserve your attention or respect, Rapunzel. Just remember that, okay?"

Her eyes widened as he said it, but he left before she could try to deny that anything like that had happened. He shook his head as he left. She didn't seem to like troubling other people.

It kind of annoyed him.

* * *

"Look at these beautiful beds!" Beckett jumped onto one of them. He grinned. "They're like clouds!"

"Clouds are made of condensed water, Beckett. You'd fall right through them and get soaking wet." Jack placed his robes on his trunk as he got dressed in his pajamas. The Slytherin Common Room did not disappoint. It was located where the previous Slytherin Common Room had been, nearly underneath the lake, but it was much brighter and happier looking than before (or so he'd been told). There weren't many evil wizards and witches coming out of Slytherin nowadays, which improved its reputation enough to make the change.

"Stick in the mud." Albus Potter, another of Scorpius' friends, stuck his tongue out at Jack.

"Scorpius is the stick in the mud. He didn't warn me of the fact that both of his other friends had weird ass names like his."

"Hey! Albus Severus is not weird-assed!"

"Albus, even Scorpius has a better name than you."

"Blame my dad. He's the one who decided to name me. Mum doesn't like them either, trust me." Albus pouted as he took his shirt off and replaced it with a pajama button-up.

"Jack Frost isn't exactly a lady-killer either, so I wouldn't be talking Jack." Scorpius smirked at him. Jack smirked back as an idea popped into his head.

"Alright Scorpius. How about a bet?"

Scorpius grinned. "Now you're talking."

"Whichever of us can date or bang the most girls throughout our years at Hogwarts gets not only bragging privileges, but also….hmm," Jack paused, thinking of the other reward. "Two hundred pounds from the loser."

"Two hundred? That's pretty steep, Jack." Beckett said, glancing uncertainly at Scorpius, who was thinking the bet through.

"Beck's right, Jack. Two hundred's a bit steep. Let's change it instead to whomever the winner is gets bragging privileges and fifty pounds, while the loser has to graduate Hogwarts wearing nothing but his pants, and has to bang a girl picked by the winner." Scorpius looked quite mischievous as he stuck out his hand for Jack to shake. "Deal?"

"I wouldn't do it if I were you," Albus muttered, staring warily at Scorpius' outstretched hand.

"Why? Doubting my skills at seducing?" Jack winked at him, and shook Scorpius' hand. "Deal."

"Let the games begin."

* * *

The first day of classes was interesting, to say the least. Jack had multiple fan clubs by the end of the day, as did Scorpius. Jack found that it wasn't very hard to seduce a girl. All he had to do was say some pretty words about her and smile and wink during class, and she was his. Although he didn't realize it, the attention was making him a bit cocky.

During Potions, he and Rapunzel ended up sitting next to each other. She had her hair up in a ponytail, so it would attract less attention, and yet, everyone still stared at her. He could see that she was self-conscious, and put a hand on her shoulder to comfort her.

While it may have eased Rapunzel slightly, the action got him glares from all corners of the room. He could hear the group behind them whispering about it.

"He's touching the _mutant._"

"He's sweet to actually interact with it." Said one with a sigh.

"Yeah, but she's still a mutant. No way is she ever going to get any guy, let alone Jack Frost." The first said, sighing with the second.

Rapunzel stiffened under his touch. She must've heard them. "You can let go." She muttered, and Jack did as he was told. Rapunzel finished the first assignment without much difficulty, and brought it up to Professor Slughorn. He smiled brightly, and nodded as she poured it into a glass and offered it to him. "Well done, well done, Ms. Gothel."

She returned to her seat, and Jack glanced across the room at Scorpius. He was talking up his partner, making her giggle and blush. Jack looked at Rapunzel. She wasn't that pretty, her hair just made her an interesting target. He knew that trying to get her as one of his 'dates' would mean sacrificing fifty pounds and his dignity to Scorpius. He looked back to the potion, and decided that he wouldn't have anything to do with her.

So what if they were both mutants. _She_ didn't know that. As far as he was concerned, Rapunzel was an annoying, unpopular, unattractive twelve-year-old that didn't deserve his attention.

At least, he tried to convince himself of this as he and Scorpius left Potions for their Transfiguration class.

* * *

By the end of the first semester of school, the score was 10:7, Jack's favor. He had gotten two extra points for getting a second-year to agree to not only a date, but a full-on snog as well. Scorpius was a good competitor, not whining or complaining about the lead. Teasing between the two of them about the bet happened often, but nothing that disrupted their friendship. Beckett and Albus got into it, too, planning speed dating for the boys and their multiple fan clubs around the school.

The only regret Jack had about it was Rapunzel. Because of the bet, he couldn't talk to her, and even though he'd tried so hard to convince himself that she wasn't worth it, he missed the fellow mutant connection he had with her, even though she didn't know it. He still had yet to tell Scorpius and the others, but decided it might be better to wait until later to tell them.

He didn't want to lose the friends he had gotten.

Even more so, he didn't want to end up being treated like Rapunzel was.

Like a kitten with no eye and no leg that was left out in the rain.

Like a mutant.


	4. Chapter 4

_Chapter 4_

_Beginning of Second Year_

"Hurry up, Goldie!" Rose yelled up through the spiral staircase leading to the room her, Rapunzel, and Belle shared. Due to the lack of girls sorted into Ravenclaw, they were allowed to have a room of three.

"I'm here! I'm here!" Rapunzel came running down the stairs, bag in hand, tripping over the carpet and landing on a pile of pillows meant for reading. Belle started laughing.

"Get up, you clutz!" She helped her up, and Rapunzel checked to make sure her high ponytail was still tight. Her hair had grown three feet over summer, and puberty was beginning to hit her, as well as the rest of the second-years. While the others covered their newly-found acne with foundation and craploads of mascara, Rapunzel found that she wasn't getting any of the pesky bumps. She chalked it up to the curse, but the other girls thought she was a goddess because of it.

"I'm ready, I'm ready." She said, heading towards the door. Rose rolled her eyes.

"Great, because I'm starving." She led the other two to the dining room, and as they sat down, Rapunzel could feel the eyes of not only the new first years, but also the eyes of everyone else on her.

"Just ignore them Rapunzel." Belle whispered as she passed her some syrup for the pancakes in front of her.

"What if I just stood up, and made everyone's hair grow as long as mine is? Wouldn't that be wonderful?" She sighed as she picked at her pancakes. Belle laughed.

"That would be a pain in the ass, Punzie."

"For you. I've lived with it my whole life. You ever tried untangling a knot that's three inches wide?"

"No, and for my own sake, I hope I never have to."

"It's not a pretty picture." The two laughed, not realizing that the attention had drifted off of Rapunzel for the moment.

"Look! Look! It's Jack Frost and Scorpius Malfoy!" A girl from the Hufflepuff table whispered excitedly to her friend. Rapunzel looked up. Sure enough, Jack, Scorpius, Albus, and Beckett had all sauntered into the dining hall.

There were many at Hogwarts in the second year that you could look at, and know that they were suffering through the slow process of puberty.

These four were not part of that number.

They looked perfect. No skin flaws, muscular, proportioned correctly. It was all Rapunzel could do to keep from gagging. Rose pretended to vomit in her food.

"Good morning, Rose. You're looking lovely today." Scorpius bent over Rose, giving her a wink. Rose wrinkled her nose at Rapunzel, then turned to Scorpius with a sweet smile.

"I hope your rash is doing okay, Scorpius. Albus was talking about it to my father a couple nights ago. Do you need more wart cream? I'm sure Albus would be happy to lend you some."

Belle swallowed a piece of pancake to keep herself from laughing, while Rapunzel started gulping down water like there was no tomorrow.

"It's fine, sweetheart. Thanks for asking. Maybe one day, you'll be able to see it." Scorpius winked at Rose without missing a beat, and walked away. Belle and Rapunzel burst out laughing, while Rose glared at the two, red in the face.

"Shut up!"  
"I'm sorry! We're sorry! It's just‒oh my God, you guys are so perfect for each other." Belle stammered out as she tried to stop.

"We are not perfect for each other." Rose hissed.

Rapunzel snorted. "Maybe you should join one of his fan clubs. I heard there's one with only red heads in it. Apparently, that's his favorite hair color."

"You guys are insufferable." She stabbed a piece of waffle with her fork.

"Hey. He's the only one who ever has a comeback for your comebacks. I like the guy, despite his manwhoreness." Belle said.

"Jack's more attractive than he is." Rose said. "If I had to pick a manwhore, it'd be Jack."

"Just because they've dated a lot of girls does not make them manwhores." Rapunzel muttered.

"Not true. Jack's slept with Millie Tangrove and Sasha Reynolds."

"Yeah, and Scorpius' slept with Gigi Howe, Rena Chang, and Vicky Stannon."

"How do you guys know this?" Rapunzel asked, laughing as they recited the many girls.

"Don't you hear the students speaking about it when you walk by?" As soon as she had said it, Rapunzel knew that Rose immediately regretted it.

She smiled sadly at her. "When I walk by, the only thing I can hear is word 'mutant' along with other colorful words. It's rather pathetic, really. Most of them can't insult a girl for their life."

"I'm sorry, Goldie. I didn't mean to‒"

"It's fine, Rose. I know how hard it is to be my friend. How much both of you guys are sacrificing for it." Rapunzel smiled gratefully at the two. She knew as well as anyone that being friends with her was committing social suicide. It was likely that neither Belle nor Rose would get asked on a date, much less get a boyfriend, while she was around. "I'm going to go get my things for Transfiguration. See you guys later." She waved at the two, leaving them so they wouldn't feel guilty.

She sighed as she walked up the stairs towards the Ravenclaw Common Room. No student passed her, as they were all in the dining hall, something she was grateful for. She'd only been here for a year, and already she'd been tripped going up and down these stairs so many times, it hurt her ankles just thinking about it.

"You okay?" She turned, and saw Jack Frost waiting at the bottom of the steps. He was leaning up against the wall, looking at her.

"Um, yeah. Thanks." She gave him a confused look, and kept walking towards the Common Room. _Why is he here?_

"Uh, Rapunzel, I, uh, I wanted to ask you about the Potions homework." He ran up to her, and started walking with her to the Ravenclaw Common Room.

"You know, I understand that I'm a maggot compared to all of you 'pure and untainted' people, but just because I'm cursed doesn't mean that I don't have feelings, Jack." She stopped and looked at him.

"I know you have feelings, I was just‒"

"Then why don't you ask me when there are people around?" She didn't say it meanly, merely a question. Trying to prove what she knew was true, but didn't want to accept.

Jack stared at the floor.

"You put the milkworm in before the salamander tails. Stir it, let it simmer for 12 minutes, then take it off the heat and put it in the sun." She sighed, and walked to the Ravenclaw Common Room door. The raven came to life, and asked her the question:

_"What is bitter and frozen, but brings joy where it goes?"_

It wasn't hard. Anyone would know it. She could feel Jack trying to figure out what is was as she waved her wand in the air, causing it to snow.

"Snowflakes." She answered.

_"Correct." _Squawked the bird, and the elaborately carved door opened with a swoosh. She entered, allowing the door to shut behind her.

* * *

"Long semester of classes?" Gothel set a cup of tea down in front of Rapunzel. It was now winter break, and finals were over, as well as the first half of the school year. She was grateful for it, as now she could hole herself away in her tower and paint as much as she wanted while Mother was away all break.

"Yeah, you could say that." Rapunzel smiled at her mother, and sipped at the steaming tea.

"Tomorrow I leave for France, so could you sing for me, my dear?" Rapunzel nodded as her mother sat down across from her. She began to sing, causing her curse to be put in effect.

_Flower, gleam and glow_

_ Make your power shine_

_ Make the clock reverse_

_ Bring back what once was mine_

As Rapunzel sang, Gothel appeared to be getting younger by the second. Not only that, but Rapunzel's hair grew a couple more inches, and she herself could feel another part of her brain opening up. It'd been happening lately. The more she sang for Mother, the more she could feel as though the 10% of her brain that she was supposed to be using becoming 12%, 14%, 15%, and so on.

She knew it was what the Sorting Hat had told her about when she was a first-year. She just didn't know what to do with it.

The next day, Mother Gothel left, and Rapunzel was locked in her tower, waving goodbye to her as she left the secret glen where Rapunzel lived when Gothel was gone. Rapunzel busied herself by painting a new mural across the stretch of blank wall in her bedroom. She was 1/3 of the way done with sketching out the drawing, when she heard someone call her name.

_Mother can't be back so soon. Maybe she forgot something. I bet she forgot her coat again._

Rapunzel sighed, a smile on her face. Mother often forgot her coat, as she was rarely ever cold. But it being winter, she was sure to have realized it, and come home to get it.

Rapunzel walked to the shut window, and opened it up, ready to tease her mother about forgetting her coat.

It wasn't her mother.


	5. Chapter 5

_Chapter 5_

"Rapunzel, I can see you." He sighed, watching as the girl grabbed the remaining blonde locks and yanked them into the tower, the window shutters closing behind them with a bang. _I shouldn't have come here…._

"Go on Jack." Aunt Tooth stood a couple feet away. "You need to explain and apologize to her."

"But Aunt Tooth‒"

"No whining, young man. You're the one flying through school without so much as a glare from another student. Think of what she's had to go through, not knowing that she had a friends all along." She gave Jack a glare, and vanished. He sighed. _I shouldn't have told her about Rapunzel…_

Being someone who didn't particularly care about most things, Jack had found it rather strange that that winter break he had come home to find that he cared about what his family thought of Rapunzel. He had told them a bit about her, and since then, Uncle North and Uncle Aster had done everything in their power to find out where she lived.

Once they did (not so hard because knowing where people lived was basically Uncle North and Uncle Aster's job), they immediately sent Aunt Tooth and him to the location.

So that Jack could tell her that he was under a curse too.

For the record, Jack never wanted this to happen. He didn't want to be here right now. Judging by how fast Rapunzel had scrambled back into her tower, he figured she didn't want him here either.

"Rapunzel?" He called up again. He knew that Aunt Tooth probably sent one of her workers to watch him. (Just because she was a Muggle dentist did not, apparently, restrict her from using magic at work). Which not only meant that he had to talk to Rapunzel, it meant that he had to stay here for a good hour at least, so it would seem like he and her were bonding.

Joy.

"Come on, Rapunzel. I just want to talk." He waved his wand around, and snow began to fall from the clouds, blanketing the grotto he was standing in. The creek nearby froze, and snowflakes began to dance along its surface.

"I'd really rather not, thank you." Her voice came from the closed shutters.

"Rapunzel, I swear to God I will climb this tower."

"Go ahead. No one's ever reached the top."

He flicked his wand, and a parade of dark clouds came rolling down to the ground. Once he had compounded them all together so they wouldn't let him fall, he stepped on, and guided them to the shut window at the top of the tower. He rapped on it twice.

No answer.

"Come on Rapunzel. I climbed the tower, let me in."

"You didn't climb it, you cheated and used magic."

"Obviously no wizard has ever decided to come after you."

"No one's lied about it either."

"Will you just let me in? It's freezing out here."

"You're the one who made it snow."

"Yeah, and now I'm the one asking you to let a poor, shivering soul inside your nice, warm tower."

He heard the shutters creaked, and watched as piece of Rapunzel's blonde hair crept out. It wrapped itself around his ankle, and he bent down to undo it. "Rapunzel, what is your h‒AAAAHHHHH!"

The shutters flew open, and Jack was yanked through into the tower. He felt the piece of hair let go, and tried to grab at it as he flew into a bureau. The shutters closed with a bang, and Jack moaned. "Nice way to let someone in, Rapunzel."

"It's not my fault." She sat on a stool, reading a book by the fire. "It has a mind of its own."

"What do you mean it‒oh." Jack watched as the tendril that had pulled him into the tower waved at him. "Am I‒"

"Just wave back."

Jack did, and the tendril fell to the floor, lifeless as it was supposed to be. "So, uh, Rapunzel, I wanted to talk to you about…uh…"

"Potions homework?" She glanced up, a smirk decorating her face. Jack shook his head.

"No, actually, it's about your curse…"

Wrong phrase to use. The second he said it, Rapunzel tensed up. Where once before she had seemed content, now her eyes looked like a wild animal's, trapped in a corner. "What about it?" She asked, trying to act nonchalant, but Jack noticed how her fingers twitched as she turned her book page.

"Um, well, I've noticed that no one at school has really been all that nice to you…"

"Wow. Excellent observation."

"…and…well…I wanted to say that…I…understand…your…circumstance?" The look she gave him as he said it made Jack feel like it wasn't the right way to put it.

"Oh you do, do you?" She shut her book, not bothering to save the page she was on. "How many times have you been shoved into a wall?"

"Uh, well, none."

"Been used as target practice for the older students' hexes?"

"…uhm…"

"Been told it'd be better for everyone if you died? Committed suicide?"

Jack looked at the ground.

"Exactly. That's what I thought." She started to walk up the stairs. He grabbed her arm as she passed by him.

"No, you don't understand‒"

"No, Jack. I don't think _you _understand." She wrenched her arm out of his grip. "You don't know what it's like, being looked at like you're a freak show. You've got girls hanging onto every word you say. You fuck them like there's no tomorrow, while for me, there might not be. You don't understand, Jack, because you aren't under a curse. I am never going to have a life like yours, Jack. I've met so many people like you, and you're all the same. You only think of yourself, never of others. You only want others to like you.

"I know why you're here. You're here so you can tell all your girlfriends that you're being nice to me, so they can think that you're such a wonderful person and all. Then when they spit in my face, and insult me for dragging your attention away from them, I can't say it didn't happen. You know what, Jack? I almost feel bad for you. It's got to be hard, handling all those girls at once. But hey, I bet fucking them senseless just makes them forget that you're doing the same to the others. I mean‒"

Here Jack stopped her. Sure, she was more or less correct in what she was saying about him, (well, except for that fact that she wasn't at all), but he needed to defend his pride. "Hey, my bet with Scorpius has nothing to do with‒"

"Oh, it's a bet? Oh my God. You're playing with other girls' hearts and futures for a bet?" She whirled at him, and Jack could see that her nose was red. He glared at her.

"I am _not_ playing with their hearts and futures, Rapunzel." He spit her name out like a sour taste in his mouth.

"Of course you aren't! Because it doesn't matter what happens to _them, _only what happens _for you._ Why didn't I see it before? Obviously this bet must be so much more important than treating girls right and not allowing them to throw their lives away if they get pregnant‒"

"‒IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE FUCKING FORCING THEM TO DO IT. THEY'RE _CHOOSING_ TO ACCEPT THE FACT THAT THEY MAY GET PREGNANT, THEY _WANT_ TO BE TREATED AS WE TREAT THEM." He laughed maniacally. "Don't you see, Rapunzel? They want to fuck us because we're _unattainable_ to all of them. You're just jealous because all anybody sees in you is an ugly, shitty little mutant that nobody wants."

Rapunzel's eyes narrowed, and she pointed to the window. "Get. Out. Of my. House."

Jack knew that the last statement went too far. Hell, he was a mutant himself. He knew he had no right to call her that, but she had made him so _fucking _mad. Who was she to go making assumptions about him? She was the one no one liked, save the two girls that tolerated her, at best. "House? More like jail cell."

Rapunzel whipped around, grabbing something off of the stove, and threw it at him. "GET OUT."

It hit him in the head, knocking him out as well as over. _Did she just hit me with a frying pan?_

* * *

"What happened to you, kid?"

Jack woke up to Uncle Aster staring at him, concerned. Aunt Tooth stood above him, obviously enraged at what had happened at Rapunzel's house.

"I found him lying in the snow, with a bump the size of Russia on his head." She said through gritted teeth.

"I take it you heard the conversation, Auntie?" Jack muttered, wincing as he tried to adjust himself.

"Uncle Aster, would you please leave Jack and me alone for a bit? I have something I'd like to speak with him about." Uncle Aster nodded, and left the room, but not without giving Jack a 'sorry-mate-you're-screwed' look as he did.

"Jack‒"

"I know, Aunt Tooth. I know. Trust me." Jack winced again as he sat up against the pillows of his bed.

"To think you would say such awful things to her!"

"She started it." He muttered. Aunt Tooth glared at him.

"You can't blame her. You didn't explain the situation very well."

"So what? It's not my fault that she decided to go ahead and start insulting me. Plus, she threw a fucking frying pan at me. I think we both know who the clear victim of that engagement is."

Aunt Tooth shook her head. "You should learn to listen, Jack, not just hear." She left after that, causing Jack to want to strangle and hug her all at the same time.

* * *

"Hey, Jack!" Jack turned and saw Scorpius run up to him. A cheeky grin told Jack all he needed to know.

"That makes it 28:27, you. Nice job, my man." He smiled, and patted Scorpius on the back, but he shook his head.

"No, no, Jack. I was going to ask if you wanted to come stay with Albus and I at his house this summer."

Jack laughed. "Bit of a late notice, Scorp. We get out of school in two weeks."

"Yeah, so?"

"Does this have anything to do with a certain red head related to Al?"

"No."

"That was a rather quick answer there, Scorp. You sure you don't just want to give me the fifty pounds now. I'll be nice and tell you to fuck her."

"Shut up, you arse. It's not because of her. Albus and his family have the best summer parties in the world. Which is why you should be there, because we have no idea where the shit you live." He laughed, and Jack nodded.

"Sure, I'll ask. Is Beckett coming?"

"Yeah, pretty sure. Hey, can we keep the score 28:27? I'm feeling lucky."

"Naw mate. You gotta either date or fuck to get that point. 27:27, equal." Jack smiled as Scorpius ran off. "Alright, well, see ya Frosty!"

"Have a nice life, Princess Sparkledust!"

A girl came up to him at that moment. She was pretty, not stunning, with dark hair and a light complexion. "Jack? I'm Freida Collins." She smiled. "Wanna walk me to my next class?" She winked at him. Jack smiled.

"Oh, I'll do more than that, sweetheart. Here, hand me your books."

_28:27, here I come._


	6. Chapter 6

_Chapter 6_

_Summer before 3__rd__ Year_

"Please, Rapunzel? It'll be fun."

"I can't go, Belle. I'm sorry." Rapunzel smiled on the other side of the telephone. Belle and Rose were right now trying to convince her to go to Rose's cousin Albus' summer party. She didn't want to go for two reasons:

She wasn't really a great person to invite to a wizard party.

If Albus was hosting it, Jack Frost would be there.

"But Goldie! We'll be able to hang out, and dance, and watch fireworks. Albus' parties are always the best!" Rose's voice came on the other line.

"I'm not really a party person, Rose. Besides, Mother is gone right now, and I have to take care of the house. Make sure no one robs the place." She smiled as the other two laughed. "I'm sorry."

"Alright, I guess we'll let it go. We're gonna miss you, Punzie."

"So very, very much."

"I'll see you guys at the train station in a few months. Bye!"

"Tootles!"

"Ciaou!"

Rapunzel hung up, and started folding the laundry. It was a beautiful day outside in the grotto, and she decided to make use of it. Her mother seemed to have lived in the Dark Ages, because not only did they not have a washer or dryer, but they lacked a computer, heating and cooling system, and a T.V. Rapunzel had managed to get Gothel to buy the cellphone for her because of her long-distance friendships with Rose and Belle. Living in a secret location in Germany really didn't help with the whole 'make-new-friends' thing.

Obviously that hadn't stopped Jack. _I wonder how he found me anyways…_

Eh, who cares? Rapunzel decided not to. She finished folding the clothes, and got up to start cleaning. By the time she had managed to finish sweeping, dusting, mopping, wiping down the windows, and doing the dishes, the hang-dry laundry was ready. She grabbed a wooden basket, filled it with wet laundry, and skipped down the many steps of her tower to hang them on the line that hung by the creek. She liked hanging laundry. It made her happy, and she so rarely felt that nowadays.

"_Flowers gleam and glow, Let your power shine, Make the clock reverse, Bring back what once was mine. Heal what has been hurt. Change the Fate's design. Save what has been lost, bring back what once was mine. What once was mine." _She sang as she hung up the many shirts, dresses, and skirts, causing her hair to light up in the sunshine. She loved singing; it was one of her favorite things to do. She didn't like her voice though, so she didn't often sing in front of people, except for Mother.

Mother loved it when she sang. _But I'm not so naïve as to not know why._

"Oh my God."

Rapunzel froze. _Oh God, oh dear, oh crap they found me. HOW DO THESE PEOPLE FIND ME? THIS GROTTO IS SUPPOSED TO BE SECRET._

"YOUR HAIR FUCKING GLOWS? AND YOU NEVER TOLD US?" Belle raced over to where Rapunzel stood staring into the creek, and started running her fingers through her hair. "This could've been so fucking useful when I needed to go pee at three in the morning last year, and I kept falling over things because Rose doesn't know how to keep her crap in one place."

"Hey! That's insulting!" Rapunzel turned, and Rose was there too. She grabbed a shirt out of the basket next to Rapunzel, and started hanging it up. "Well, not as insulting as this shirt. Who gave it to you, Goldie? An old blind woman?"

Rapunzel smiled. "It's Mother's."

"Your mother lives in the 1800s."

_Pretty sure that's when she was a teenager, so yeah. She does live in the 1800s._

"CAN WE PLEASE TALK ABOUT YOUR HAIR RAPUNZEL." Belle kept stroking it with her fingers. "It. Fucking. GLOWS."

"Yeah, but Belle, I'm pretty sure that's something Goldie over here _doesn't_ want us screaming about." Rose smiled, taking out a skirt. "Yikes, Rapunzel. Please burn these if any of them are yours."

"How did you guys get here?" Rapunzel asked, as the three of them hung the laundry together.

"Oh! Right!" Rose turned. "UNCLE GEORGE! YOU CAN COME OUT OF THE BUSHES!"

A tall man with ginger hair a lot like Rose's emerged from the pile of shrubbery near the entrance. He was missing an ear. He smiled sheepishly at Rapunzel. "Hi."

"That's George. He's my uncle, on my dad's side. I figured he'd be the one person in my family to understand your case the most." Rose leaned over to Rapunzel, whispering in her ear. "He lost his ear during a fight with a Death Eater before the Battle of Hogwarts. It's a touchy subject, but when I told him a bit about you, he wanted to Apparate us here."

"Oh. Uh, okay." Rapunzel looked up at George. She smiled. "Hi! I'm Rapunzel. I'm cursed." She stuck out a hand, which George stared at for a bit. She pulled it back, still smiling. "Sorry. You don't have to touch me if you don't want to."

"What? Oh, no! Of course not!" George beamed, grabbing her hand and pulling it towards him, shaking it vigorously. "It's such a pleasure to meet you, Rose. I'm cursed as well, see?" He pointed to his ear‒or rather, the place on the side of his head where there should've been an ear. "You probably don't want to hear the story. It's a bit of an earful."

Rapunzel smiled. "That was awful."

"I get that a lot. So, Rose and Belle say you're coming to the Potter's summer party." George gave a pointed look to Rose.

"Right." Rose butted in. "You're coming with us, Goldie."

"What? But, I've got work to do, and I need to watch the house, and just look at this laundry, I'm not even half-finished with it, besides I need to study for Charms (you know how stressed I get about that homework), and I have a whole list that I‒"

"Breathe, Rapunzel." Belle shook her, smiling. "No one's ever going to find this place. It took us days to figure out where it was."

"But you called me no less than 2 hours ago."

"We planned ahead." Rose said, picking up the now-empty laundry basket. "You didn't think you could lecture Jack Frost about being a manwhore, and expect to keep it a secret from us, did you?"

"Uh…how do you guys know about that?" Rapunzel started twirling a piece of hair, staring at the ground.

"Well, hypothetically, if the girls' room was right underneath Scorpius, Al, and Jack's…" began Belle.

"…And if said girls decided to use some spells to eavesdrop on the boys…." continued Rose.

"…then, hypothetically of course, these girls would know every dirty little secret ever told by them, especially an argument involving the said girls' best friend." finished Belle. Rapunzel laughed.

"You two are positively devious."

"We learned from the best." Rose glanced at George, who looked at the sky and started whistling innocently.

"Anywho, let's get going Punzie. We've got to get you party-ready." Belle and Rose dragged her to the door leading to the tower. "Hey, any chance that your hair can keep itself glowing for over four seconds? Maybe, say, three hours? Possibly more?"


	7. Chapter 7

_Chapter 7_

**_AN: Keep in mind, Rapunzel hasn't ever heard of the Weasley family, or how their family was torn apart_**

"Guys, I'm having second thoughts." Rapunzel's heart started to race once she saw the Burrow in sight. Actually, it'd been racing the second the girls and George had shown up at her house.

For the record, she really did not want to be there right now. She knew her arrival would make things worse, and she'd probably ruin the party for everyone. No, she _would _ruin the party for everyone.

"Stop! You can't have second thoughts now, Goldie!" Rose grabbed her arm, trying to pull her towards the Burrow, but Rapunzel stayed where she was.

"Yeah, we got you all prettied up, and we even spent an hour trying to figure out how to keep your hair glowing for over three seconds!" Belle shook the tape recorder in Rapunzel's face. Rapunzel was the one who had figured it out. She realized that the frequency of the sound waves in the notes of the song could be hummed into a tape recorder, and then bobby-pinned inside the messy bun on her head. The sound waves made the hair glow, and as long as the music kept repeating itself, the hair would continue to.

Now Rapunzel surmised that she probably shouldn't have helped make herself even more of a cause for distraction. Having 12-foot-long hair was enough of one, having it glow for hours on end wasn't going to help her case. "Guys, I'm just going to sit here a while, okay? I think I need to compose myself before I walk inside." She sat, hoping the others would leave her so she could make a run for it.

The girls frowned. "Alright, but I'll be out here to check on you in like 10 minutes, okay? You better not leave." Rose wagged her finger at her, a mock frown on her face. The two headed into the Burrow, where music and voices were now flooding from.

Rapunzel stared at the ground, her eyes closed. _I can't go in there._

"Second thoughts, eh?" George sat down next to her. Rapunzel's eyes shot open. She'd forgotten he was there. "Bet you ten Galleons you were going to bolt."

"Then I guess I'd lose ten…what? What are Galleons?"

"Right, sorry. Sometimes I forget that they changed the currency after the War." He smiled at her. "I've been doing that a lot lately."

They sat in silence, staring at the sun, which was slowly sinking into the horizon. "What was it like?" Rapunzel asked quietly. "Before curses, I mean."

"There never really was a time before curses, Rapunzel. There was just a time when the line between good and bad was obvious, and those who were bad used curses, and those who weren't didn't. Now that line is so foggy, I'm sure even the great Harry Potter has crossed it."

"Were there people like us then?"

"Yes. They weren't treated as horribly as we are." He smiled. "Voldemort was a bigger threat, you know? Missing an ear or having long hair weren't really considered the spawns of Satan until he died."

Rapunzel didn't respond; she didn't know how to. George laughed it off as a joke, having a curse, and yet she couldn't see how it was funny.

"Can I ask you a personal question?" He turned to her, then, without waiting for her to answer, "How did you get cursed?"

"Oh." Rapunzel had never been asked that before. Normally people didn't care to know. "Well, my mother says I was born with it. She says that my real mother was very sick when she gave birth to me, and so my real father went out to find a cure. He found a flower that could cure all diseases, and fed it to her during labor. When I popped out, she died, and I had six inches of blonde hair. My father died of grief and embarrassment a week later. Which was when Gothel took me in. No one else wanted me."

She smiled apologetically. "Sorry. We're about to go into a party, and I just told you how my parents died. I really should get out more often."

George smiled back. "It's fine. I'm glad you told me. A Death Eater cursed my ear off, so my curse story isn't nearly as sad as yours is. I believe this is the first time someone other than my brother has outdone me."

"I won't tell him if you don't."

"Oh, I'm sure he's already laughing about it now." George stood up. "Let's go inside. It's time for you to meet the family, Punzie."

* * *

"Rapunzel's here."

"Great. Do you have a gun in your house?"

"Why? You want to shoot yourself?"

"No. I want to shoot her. She's fucking annoying." Jack huffed and leaned farther back into Albus' bed. Albus sat next to him, the two playing an intense game of _Black Ops 6: Divine Rights_. It was basically like all the other _Black Ops_ games but the boys loved it because the entire point of the game was to go through hell, and come back to Earth in one piece.

"You _still _pissed that she threw you out of her house?"

"No, what I'm _still _pissed about is the fact that she hit me with a frying pan in the face." Jack pointed to the black-and-blue spot underneath his eye. "She shouldn't even be strong enough to hold a frying pan, goddamnit."

Albus laughed. "She hit you pretty hard, Frost. Sucks to be you."

Scorpius burst into the room. "Guys, it's party time. Stop being losers, and let's go chat some girls up."

"You realize the only girls here are either A) my family members, or B) Rapunzel and Belle." Albus managed to shoot both Jack and the Dark Lord Satan at the same time, ending the game.

"Exactly my point." Scorpius winked, then disappeared.

Albus shook his head. "Well, Lily will have fun. She's liked Scorpius since forever."

"I'm still waiting on that gun, Al."

* * *

The fireworks were the best part of the night, in Rapunzel's opinion. Mr. Weasley ("Call me Ron. 'Mr. Weasley' is my dad." *wink*) and George lit them off, and they exploded into the sky with such exuberance that the hairs on the back of Rapunzel's arms raised and goosebumps formed on her legs.

The party had been fantastic. Rose's family had accepted her as one of their own, helping her out with every little thing she did. It was the first time in a long while she had felt truly at home. Rose and Belle stayed with her every second, and she never even caught a glimpse of Jack. Her glowing hair stayed that way through the night, but she had to let it down later on.

She hadn't realized it'd been growing the entire time it'd been glowing, and now it dragged on the floor behind her. She shut off the tape once the fireworks started, not wanting to direct attention towards her. Belle and Rose left to get them drinks, and Rapunzel found herself sitting next to Beckett, one of Albus' friends.

She'd never really talked to him. He wasn't really the star of the Slytherin 3rd years, that was Albus' position, being the son of Harry Potter and all. (For the record, Rapunzel hadn't really heard of them. Well, she'd heard of the War and their part in it, but hey, the combination of living in a secret location in Germany and being cursed didn't exactly make her a wanted customer of _The Daily Prophet_.)

He also wasn't in the same manwhore league as Jack and Scorpius, meaning he was kind of overlooked when it came to the who's who of 3rd years.

"Hey. You're Rapunzel, right?"

"Wow. How in the world did you know?"

He gestured towards her hair, which lay sprawled around her. "Educated guess."

"You're Beckett, right?"

"And how could you have possibly known that?"

"Educated guess."

He laughed. "You know, it's weird how I've never formally met you. I mean, I've known Rose for ages, and Belle and I live near each other. But Albus and Jack talk so much about you that I feel like I've already known you longer than either of them."

Rapunzel gave him a look. "What?"

"Nothing. Hey, so I hear you're planning on taking Ancient Runes this year?"

"Yep. I figured that since I can already speak Latin and Sanskrit, one more dead language can't hurt." She smiled when he laughed. He really wasn't that bad looking. He didn't compare to Jack or Scorpius, but he had really lovely dark brown hair and green eyes, like her own.

"That's good. I'm taking it too, but I don't know anyone else who is. We'll probably walk into class and it'll just be us two." He smiled at her as Belle and Rose sat back down. "I look forward to studying dead societies' reminiscings with you, Rapunzel." He left, and Belle immediately squealed, hugging Rapunzel.

"Oh my God he likes you! AAAAAAHHHH! PUNZIE! I actually like Beckett too, he's not a douchebag manwhore like his friends."

"One of his friends is my cousin, Belle."

"True. Albus isn't a manwhore. But he is a douchebag."

"…I can agree with that."

"This year is going to be so great!" Belle giggled, clapping her hands. "RA RA RAVENCLAW!"


End file.
